From big commercial developments to a full-fledged university campus and a slew of major new roads, those who live, work and play in Kapolei can expect to see dramatic changes in O'ahu's "Second City" by the end of 2010.

There's dirt being turned everywhere. The landscape is strewn with trucks, and cranes tower over job sites, including at the Kapolei judiciary complex, which began construction this fall.

Perhaps not since Waikiki in the 1960s or the Neighbor Island resort boom that lasted through the 1990s has so much big-ticket construction taken place in such a concentrated area. The story of Kapolei, the projects seem to be saying, is no longer only about young families moving there to afford newer or larger homes at the expense of driving into town for work every day.

The growth will have a significant impact not just on West O'ahu, but the rest of the island and state. Large population magnets such as the University of Hawai'i-West O'ahu campus and the judiciary complex as well as Kapolei Business Park are expected to ease, or at least stem the growth of daily traffic bottlenecks on H-1 Freeway.

It's enough to make long-timers such as Makakilo resident Maeda Timson giddy with anticipation.

"I just want everyone to know that they can't blink, because if they blink they're not going to see it happen," Timson said.

The former chairwoman of the Makakilo/Kapolei/Honokai Hale Neighborhood Board has lost count of the number of committees she's sat on and meetings she's attended to discuss the future of Kapolei.

"For those of us who've been involved, it's pretty mind-blowing to finally see these things come to fruition," she said.

Mike Hamasu, consulting and research director for real estate company Colliers Monroe Friedlander, said the progression is natural, starting with the development of homes in Makakilo in the late 1960s and in Kapolei 20 years later.

"First came the residential development in the area, which ultimately spurred additional spots of retail and what usually happens after retail is office space and then government services fall into line," Hamasu said. "You have this coalescing of all these supporting elements, which actually says you now have a viable entity, a so-called second city."

JAMES CAMPBELL CO.

Perhaps no one is more happy about the Kapolei boom than officials with the James Campbell Co. and its subsidiary, the Kapolei Development Co. The former Estate of James Campbell began master-planning the region in the 1950s. Kapolei Property recently announced it is fast-tracking approximately $172 million in roads and other major infrastructure for the region.

David Rae, senior vice president of development for Kapolei Property Development, said that the next 36 months will bring more growth to Kapolei than ever before.

Rae said one factor is the city helping to expedite the permits for construction of its road projects. He also applauded the state and city for moving on their own major transportation projects including the North-South Road, the H-1 interchange in the middle of Kapolei town, and completion of Kapolei Parkway.

Rae said he expects about 75 percent of his company's infrastructure projects to be completed by the end of 2010.

"We've heard loud and clear that transportation is an important thing for people and we're trying to respond to that as rapidly as possible."

MORE JOBS EXPECTED

The new arterial roads through the center of downtown Kapolei are expected to shift vehicles away from the often congested Kamokila Boulevard.

Meanwhile, the long-anticipated North-South Road and its accompanying freeway on-ramp should ease traffic coming in and out of both Kapolei and 'Ewa, as will the widening of Fort Weaver Road and construction of yet another Kapolei interchange between the Kapolei Theaters and Zippys.

Five smaller retail and office complexes are planned for along or near the grid of new Kapolei roads over the next three years. Meanwhile, a new Costco and Target — the latter part of the Kapolei Commons shopping complex — are also expected to be in place by 2010.

Kapolei resident George Yamamoto, another neighborhood board member, said he's thankful for the roads and government services such as the UH campus and state courthouse. Yamamoto lived in 'Ewa By Gentry in the early 1990s and now lives in Ko Olina.

"We've just been building more homes without having enough jobs in the area," Yamamoto said. "People will now have opportunities in this area."

Kapolei Property Development estimates that the number of jobs in the region will more than double from 27,000 to 65,000. A survey done for the developer shows that 22 percent of Kapolei residents work in Kapolei, while 78 percent who have jobs would prefer to work in the Second City.

NONPROFITS MOVING IN

Joining the parade of development into West O'ahu are a number of nonprofit agencies scheduled to complete major facilities by the end of 2010.

Hale Kipa is putting up a service center in 'Ewa, and the Salvation Army is placing its $80 million Kroc Community Center near the UH campus. Meanwhile, Easter Seals Hawaii is opening its $7 million Napuakea service center in Makakilo, and Goodwill Industries of Hawaii's $11 million career and learning center is going up in the Kapolei Business Park.

Kapolei advocates said that despite the dramatic growth that's taking place over the next three years, more projects are just over the horizon.

Walt Disney Parks & Resorts announced in October it wants to put up an 800-room project at Ko Olina by 2011. Seven new hotel, time-share or condominium towers have been built or announced in the last few years in all for Ko Olina. At least three other projects are already under way.

Kapolei Property Development, meanwhile, announced plans for two new housing developments — Makaiwa Hills and Kapolei West — that will add 4,100 homes as well as commercial and retail centers. The company is also planning a new industrial park called Kapolei Harborside adjacent to Kalaeloa Barbers Point Harbor.

On the eastern side of Kapolei, Florida-based DeBartolo has been chosen by the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands to put up a 67-acre mall that some have called the Ala Moana of the west side. It will have up to 1.1 million square feet of mixed use space, including offices and two hotels.

Look for the first stores to open toward the end of 2011, DHHL spokesman Lloyd Yonenaka said. DHHL, incidentally, will be moving its new headquarters near the UH West O'ahu campus this coming March.

Also on the 'Ewa end of the region, D.R. Horton Schuler Division has proposed as many as 12,000 homes for the area. That project would rival Mililani in its scope.

Keith Yoshida, president of the West Oahu Economic Development Association, said there was a time when Kapolei consisted of little more than acres of vacant former sugar-cane land.

"Now you drive out to Kapolei, there's very little vacant land," Yoshida said. "And if it is vacant, there's something going on there."

Reach Gordon Y.K. Pang at gpang@honoluluadvertiser.com.

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